Sunday, December 8, 2013

Does Your Back or Neck Hurt?

I remember the day back in 1997 when I was at my business
and I picked up a pen and my back went out.I remember saying to myself like a dork.“That was odd.”I had been training
in Jiu-Jitsu for about 4 years and my back hurt ALL the time! Especially from
all the neck injuries I acquired. This
was the day my back rebelled against me.

I walked out of my business and decided to go home.By the time I got to my car I couldn’t get
into it!I went home and laid down and
then found I couldn’t get up!The sad
part is I had to return to my business and it took all the strength I had just to
get there.I was literally dragging my
foot on the ground like an idiot.

I had a chiropractor student who took one look at me and
asked if he could help.I said “Sure if
you think you can.”He suggested I come
down to his business right away and let him work on me. I went right then.It was a slow process but over a couple weeks
my back got amazingly better.I decided
to keep going and I haven’t stopped going to a chiropractor since (Well almost).
I have had a few problems but nothing that kept me off the mats.

Some of you are reading this calling B.S. on
Chiropractors.I understand. Let me just say that
without Chiropractic I would NEVER have gotten my black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

The interesting thing about your spine is that all the
nerves run through it.Your vertebrae
will start pinching on those nerves like pinching a hose.They call this a Subluxation.Those nerves control all your pain, your
movement, your internal organs, your immune system, your reflexes, your flexibility and even control
your mood (happiness, depression).In my
specific case it controlled how I walked and how I could no longer pick up much
with my arms. If you do nothing the vertebrae WILL right itself (maybe) but eventually
you will be out of alignment again and the subluxation will happen continuously,
along with the pain.

Chiropractic will absolutely help in correcting this problem
freeing up the impingement on your back and helping your movement AND your
health.I am convinced.

The only problem is that is not an immediate cure.We Americans want a cure RIGHT NOW.People go to the chiropractor and after one
or two treatments they say. “This sucks.It’s not working.” Chiropractic is a PREVENTIVE procedure not an instant
cure after the fact.You need to make it
a part of your Jiu-Jitsu life style and training to see the best results.But that cost money!Yep…Sorry.The alternative is to live with it and I want to say right now.I don’t want to live with back pain!

Not all Chiropractors are good chiropractors.My suggestion to you is to contact a sports
chiropractor and see if they have a plan where you can pay a small amount every
month for “preventive” “ongoing” treatment.Give it six months and then look at the results instead of just 2
visits.

You might say “I tried it and it didn’t work.”…..Sorry, I am merely giving you MY results.You might have a SEVERE injury that really only surgery can help.This costs way more money and the problem
with back surgery is that it works but typically only for a number of years and
the problem comes back. This means you’re
out of training and could end up right back where you started.It
should be a last resort.

Remember when I said I never quit seeing a chiropractor
since (almost)? Well I quit teaching martial arts for a couple years and moved
to Las Vegas where I trained Jiu-Jitsu and taught firearms.I didn’t have a lot of money at that time and
Chiropractic got put on the back burner.I trained hard and my back and neck hurt ALL the time.I remember laying on the floor and wanting to
cry because I was in so much pain.I
haven’t quit since then and I have never had that serious of a problem (knock
on wood).

The last thing I want to mention is that many major sports figures
boxers, football players, baseball players, MMA stars have chiropractors ON STAFF. They see the benefits of chiropractic and that
is what gives them the edge.

I’m giving
you some good advice.Many of you won’t
take it.Living with back pain will take
the joy out of life.Many of you already
know this. I know I am glad to be a black belt.

1 comment:

I would also recommend weight training, as strengthening your muscles can help prevent injury. I've found it especially useful for BJJ, as we're constantly contorting our bodies in odd ways, often with the weight and pressure of someone else behind it. Squats and deadlifts are the best for the back and knees, IMO.